Liverpool were on fire as they defeated Bayern Leverkusen 4-0 at Anfield on another historical Champions League night.
Despite playing out a 0-0 draw in the first half, Diaz fired his maiden Reds hat-trick in the 4-0 Champions League win at Anfield. Gakpo also scored a goal as the Reds continued their impressive form.
Liverpool manager Arne Slot has now revealed why he deployed Luis Diaz as a makeshift striker in the match despite having Darwin Nunez fit. And while Cody Gakpo has operated as a number nine for Liverpool in the past, Diaz was offered the new role.
Slot said: “I only have four attackers available at the moment with the injuries of Diogo Jota and Federico Chiesa, and Darwin didn’t play that much in the beginning and then he started to play a bit more.
“With this fixture list, it’s almost impossible to play them all, especially if you haven’t played that many games before. So, that in combination with the fact that I think Tah – who is a real good defender and is one of the best defenders in Germany, maybe the best defender in Germany – maybe likes to play more against a target man, someone who’s there in the middle. We chose to play Lucho more from the left or the midfield and then maybe surprise him afterwards with runs in behind – not only him but in general. If you look at the first goal, that played out – what a pass from Curtis Jones.”
Diaz is a winger and primarily been deployed on the left flank since his arrival from Porto in January 2022. With his new form in front of goal, seems Slot has locked a new potential in the Columbia international.
